Current vaporizers may be used with a variety of materials, such as e-liquid, extracts, oil concentrates, loose-leaf or dry-herb. However, use of each different material requires a separate vaporizer, as the vaporizers are not interchangeable among various materials.
Vaporizers are used for aerosolizing or vaporizing an active ingredient within plant matter, such as cannabis, tobacco or other herb blends, and or aerosolizing/vaporizing the concentrates of the active ingredients, such as tobacco or medical cannabis oils like THC or CBD.
Vaporization and aerosolizing of the active ingredients is performed by heating the plant matter or concentrate to the point of where the active ingredients boil, evaporate, or vaporize without combusting the plant matter or concentrates, which some consider to be a better alternative to smoking. By avoiding combustion of the plant matter/oil, a user does not inhale harmful byproducts produced from smoking (e.g. tar, carcinogens, etc.). Furthermore, vaporizing is considered to be a more efficient material delivery method, as opposed to other methods, such as ingestion.
Vaporizers currently come in shapes approximating a cigarette or cigar, but larger. They are clunky with little thought to the shape, including the portability of the shape. There is not vaporizer that can easily fit in ones pocket in an non-obtrusive matter. Sophisticated design changes are necessary to create a slim profile, credit card shaped vaporizer that can fit into a wallet or non-obtrusively slim into a pocket.
Common types of currently used vaporizers include wax, oil-concentrate vaporizers and dry-herb/loose-leaf vaporizers. The vaporizers may utilize one of two heating methods: conduction heating or convection heating. Conduction heating methods may be used in both wax/oil-concentrate vaporizers and dry-herb/loose-leaf vaporizers. For oil concentrates, conduction heating includes a resistive metal coil is typically used to heat up the oils by applying the oils directly to the coil heating element. For dry herb vaporizers, the heating method includes filling a metal bowl or container with an herb, and then using an exterior heating element for heating.
In convection heating, primarily for dry-herb or loose-leaf materials, air is heated before flowing through the herb, using a resistive material coil. When the hot air flows through the dry-herb/loose-leaf, it causes the active ingredients to vaporize without combusting the herb or plant matter. However, such current vaporizers, whether utilizing convection or conduction heating, are not adaptable to different user designs and preferences. Specifically, current vaporizers do not allow for a user to interchange or modify heating methods for different materials. Instead, a user is required to purchase alternative vaporizers for each desired modification.
It would be desirable, therefore, to provide a vaporizer with a modular design, such that one vaporizer may be used with different types of materials. It would be further desirable for the modular vaporizer to provide for user customization, such as the ability to include add-on accessories or modify certain features of the vaporizer. It would be yet further desirable for the modular vaporizer to provide systems and method for interchangeable heating preferences.
Current vaporizers also tend to cause impurities, which are then inhaled when used. These impurities can be caused by the device itself, as well as by the heating elements used in traditional vaporizer devices, particularly metal heating elements. It would be desirable, therefore, to provide an all-glass heating element, reducing and/or eliminating impurities caused by metals, improving flavor and increasing the purity of vapor. It would be further desirable to provide an all-glass heating element that eliminates contact between metals or harmful materials and vaporized materials, such as liquids, oils or herbs.
In accordance with the invention as set forth below, a flattened, thin and optionally modular vaporizer is provided.